Welcome! Introduce yourself here 🙂

[Daisydreamer]

New here? Welcome to the SANE Forums! We are so happy you found us and have joined our wonderful community. There are lots of people here like you, who can understand what you might be going through and offer valuable peer support.

You may see members reaching out to share their stories, asking questions about mental health, looking for others who get it, seeking support and offering support. We hope you find this a supportive and welcoming space to be. 

We want to get to know you, and introduce you to other members of the SANE Community. 

To get started, you can simply post here by clicking "reply" to introduce yourself and a fun fact or two about you. 

Or, you can introduce yourself to the community by starting a new discussion thread! How to do that you ask? Follow the below steps to create your first post.

• Click back into the Welcome & Getting Started topic area
• Click the ‘New Discussion’ Button
• Type in a subject title
• Enter your post (there are some helpful tips on how you can introduce yourself below)
• Then click post!

You may see our Peer Support Workers welcoming new members in this space, so please reach out if you have any questions, or if we can help you get started 🙂 We are always happy to help! To reach us, @moderator or email us at team@saneforums.org. We look forward to getting to chatting soon

[Eyad]

Hi guys, I'm new to this page. I have recently about a 1 year now started having anxiety. At 1st I didn't understand what was happening. I told my doctor, for no apparent reason I feel like everything is wrong and I feel helpless. He told me I was having anxiety attacks. Medicine helps sometimes but other times nothing helps. I don't want to worry my wife because she has ptsd and I don't want to burden her or my young children for that matter. So I guess I'm here to learn how to cope with my anxiety without having to worry the people I love. They deserve better than for me (the one that is supposed to help and support them) to have them worry about me. I'm really sorry of I said something wrong, I'm very new to this and I just want to know how to get better. Thank you guys for this forum. I was so happy when I discovered there was something that would help me cope.

[Former-Member]

Hi there @Eyad and welcome to the forums 😊This is a place where I hope you'll feel safe to share your story, to gain support from like minded members and perhaps to share a little of what you've learned along the way.

I also want to say straight up that you haven't said a thing wrong, quite the contrary – you've written a beautiful intro post that highlights some lovely qualities, like selflessness and respect for others.

As someone who has lived with quite a bit of anxiety over the years, my heart goes out to you. It's not easy when anxiety creeps up on you for the first time, and when you notice it begin to take a hold in your every day life. But here's the good news, with the right help and support, it needn't play such a dominant feature and strip away all the amazing experiences life has to offer. I can very happily say that whilst I still live with anxiety from time to time, it doesn't rule me anymore.

I'm wondering whether you've been able to find a therapist you can talk to for support? For me that was the key in understanding anxiety and finding the courage to welcome the meaning in it, as well as how to act despite it at times.

Rhye ☘️

[Zoe7]

Hey @Eyad and Welcome 😁

The thing that struck me the most about your post is your need to protect your family but I am wondering why you do not feel you can open up to them as it seems they can to you? There is no shame nor anything wrong with having that mutual support - any relationship is a partnership and therefore it is not one person's role to 'look after' everyone else ...you may even find that the anxiety lessens knowing your family are aware and you have that additional support. Your s wife in particular may show great empathy as she is too dealing with her own MH and therefore would have great insight into what you are struggling with. A problem shared is a problem halved ...we of course are here with you but maybe your family would like to be there for you too 👍

[Eyad]

Hello and thank you for replying. I really do appreciate it. I see what your saying, I have just always thought that if my wife already has her mental health issues then if I was to let her know I was struggling, then it would just give her more to deal with. Perhaps you are right. She is an extremely loving and nurturing person. She is an amazing mother and my best friend. I've never been very open about my emotions growing up. I lost my father in my teen years and he asked me to be strong for my mum and my siblings. So I've always hidden any weaknesses I've had and been strong for people I love.I know it's wrong to do that. I have heard that before. I will try, I just don't want to cause any worries for my family. I don't know how to say it.

[Eyad]

I am now trying to speak to my wife and she is very understanding. I was scared she'd see me as being weak somehow but I now realise that fear was all in my head. She has been so amazing. Thank you so much for encouraging me to speak out to her .

[Daisydreamer]

Hi @Eyad it sounds like you may have reached out to your wife, and taken that brave step to be open about how you are feeling. Good on you! It can be such a daunting step to take, but it sounds like it has been a really positive experience and opened up a new support for you

[Daisydreamer]

Hello to our new members today @Ellen777 @Ladybyrd @Lulu7 @Marie8 @Raisaq 🙂 My name is Daisydeamer and I am the Community Manager here at SANE, wishing you a warm welcome to the SANE Forums. We hope you find this is a supportive space to be!

This is a space where you can introduce yourself, for example a fun fact or what brings you to the SANE Forums. There are lots of members who are here to support you, say hi and connect over the things you have in common. 

If you are interested to share your story or start a discussion, you can also head over to this link to start posting. 

Look forward to seeing you around soon 🙂

[Eyad]

Hi DaisyDreamer, yes I had a really good long (hard at times) conversation with her and she was so good. I love her so much. She listened to me without judging me or thinking any less of me. I guess I was just worried about what people would think of me. She's made me see that it's normal for anyone to need help sometimes. I feel a great sense of relief, I don't have to hide my feelings and try to pretend everything is OK all the time. I do feel vulnerable but I guess it's ok too. I'm having a good day. 😁

[Former-Member]

@Eyad what an amazing outcome you've achieved! How good does it feel to take those first steps toward being brave and vulnerable, sharing your feelings with your loved one, and being met with their love and support...it sounds like you have a beautiful connection and I'm so pleased to hear that you've found a safe place to land. Thank you for updating us with this lovely news 😊